Maria Timofeeva vs Kateryna Baindl Prediction & Betting Tips - Budapest, Hungary

Prediction published on 23/07/2023, 03:15  by Nella Wagah in Tennis Predictions

Lucky loser Maria Timofeeva and unseeded Kateryna Baindl will on Sunday meet in the final of the Budapest Grand Prix. Timofeeva lost as a second seed in the qualifiers to Anna Siskova. Thinking her tournament was over, she was granted a lifeline to play in the main draw as a lucky loser. The Russian grabbed the chance with both hands and here she is, playing her very first tour-level final. Mind you, this is also her debut in Budapest. In the semifinals, Timofeeva defeated ninth seed Nadia Podoroska in three sets, her third 2-1 victory in the competition. She is now up a whopping 97 places in the live ranking to 149th, a new career-high. Timofeeva has played three finals already in 2023, all coming in the ITF circuit, and has won one title. She has recorded a 27-15 win-loss record with nine of her victories coming on clay.

This is the first time that both players have advanced this far in the tournament. Baindl is through to her first final in six years. The Ukrainian last played in a final in September of 2017. She won then in Dalian in the challenger circuit and will hope for the same outcome here. Baindl has been dominant in qualifying for only her second tour final and is yet to drop a set in Budapest. Before this season, she had only gone as far as the quarterfinals here. In the semifinals, she defeated fellow unseeded player Claire Liu with the second set requiring a tiebreaker. Baindl had struggled with her form before arriving in Hungary and is still on a losing record despite her success here. She has now won 10 of the 22 matches she has played and is up to 77th in the live ranking.